Race & Racism

This article launches a new and more simple definition of institutional racism. A more straightforward definition will help organizations take action. Simply put, institutional racism exists when there are racial disparities with no effective action to decrease them.

After 18-year-old Stephen Lawrence was killed by racist thugs while waiting for a bus in South London in 1993, no one would have guessed that it would lead to a rediscovery of the concept of institutional racism, a revolution in public services in the UK, and a new definition of racism in Canada in 2017. […]

Wellesley Institute hosted two idea labs at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health’s (DLSPH) student led conference on Oct 23rd and 24th, 2015. The goals of these labs were to increase participants’ understandings of racism as a social determinant of health as well as empower participants to understand where they can make changes within […]

Like many people I came to Canada because of its international reputation for fairness. I came to Toronto from London, UK, because Toronto is more multicultural and has a reputation as a place where people from ethnically diverse groups can live side by side and flourish. Toronto is a social project that the world needs […]

A couple weeks ago Wellesley Institute CEO Dr. Kwame McKenzie shared 15 ideas to reduce the impact of racism on health. Then we asked you to join the conversation by taking to Twitter with #stopracism15 and your ideas. Here’s a taste of what you contributed as well as some resources and media we’ve explored thanks to your participation: @kwame_mckenzie […]

You’ve read the 15 ideas collected here (and if you haven’t yet, please do) – now what are some of your ideas to end racism? We invite you to join the conversation on decreasing the impact of racism on health. All of the ideas that we have shared have been put into play in other cities around […]

One of the main uses of history is to help us do better in the future. For my black history talk for Toronto Public Health I focused on initiatives that have been put in place elsewhere to decrease the impact of racism on health. If you read a good idea here, steal it. The scientific […]

Join Toronto Public Health and Wellesley Institute’s Dr. Kwame McKenzie on February 12th for a discussion on strategies for closing health inequities, as part of the City of Toronto’s Black History Month events. Racism makes people sick. A 2013 Toronto Public Health (TPH) report shows that racism results in increased rates of depression, work and life stress, as well […]

This paper explores the role of racism in the health and well-being of Indigenous peoples in Canada. It provides an overview of the historical and contemporary contexts of racism which have historically, and continue to, negatively shape the life choices and chances of Indigenous people in this country. Indigenous people experience the worst health outcomes […]

Violence against women isn’t picky. It crosses various lines including socio-economic status, religion, race, and culture. Statistics from the Canadian Women’s Foundation show that 50% of Canadian women experience physical or sexual assault after the age of 16 and that a woman is killed, on average, every six days by her intimate partner. With such […]

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Acknowledgement of Traditional Land

We would like to acknowledge this sacred land on which the Wellesley Institute operates. It has been a site of human activity for 15,000 years. This land is the territory of the Huron-Wendat and Petun First Nations, the Seneca, and most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River. The territory was the subject of the Dish With One Spoon Wampum Belt Covenant, an agreement between the Iroquois Confederacy and Confederacy of the Ojibwe and allied nations to peaceably share and care for the resources around the Great Lakes.

Today, the meeting place of Toronto is still the home to many Indigenous people from across Turtle Island and we are grateful to have the opportunity to work in the community, on this territory.

Revised by the Elders Circle (Council of Aboriginal Initiatives) on November 6, 2014

In the spirit of equity and inclusion, if we can improve on this statement, please contact us. Thank you.